The New Jabra Eclipse Review

Gone are the days where we run around like robots with bulky Bluetooth headsets wrapped around our ears. I know that most of us would shy away from using Bluetooth headsets because of their appearance and size. Jabra is known for its innovative sleek designs when it comes to headsets. With the debut of the Jabra Eclipse Wireless headset, Jabra has taken big strides in making a hands free headset look a lot stealthy and stylish with no compromises.

The Jabra Eclipse has an all new slimmed down design which makes it one of the smallest and lightest headsets in the market. Compared to the Jabra Stealth, which I thought was small and modern, the new Jabra Eclipse has a brushed non shiny material on the front face with the speaker grill and the logo which makes it very discreet. In fact, this new design feels so natural I rarely felt there was anything tugging at my ear when I wore it for long periods of time. The Jabra Eclipse is designed to be worn all the time, as such they made it look and feel as natural and less noticeable as possible. Jabra also includes 3 sets of extra ear gels for an even comfy fit. Since the Jabra Eclipse is smaller and lightweight it can hang in our ear canal giving good noise cancellation when we are on a call.

There are NO buttons on this headset. You have to double tap to answer and end calls, which is really cool. You also have the option of using your voice and say "Answer" or "Ignore" when receiving a call.

The voice quality on the Jabra Eclipse is amazing. The earpiece volume is loud and the voice sound is natural and clear. I have been using the headset when driving with my children and in public spaces, and I find the calls are clear without any issues. The Eclipse has dual omnidirectional microphones which help with voice pickup and noise cancellation in crowded environments. The headset’s music grade speaker makes listening to podcasts and music a pleasure. So far I haven't had any issues with the headset disconnecting, as this headset supports the latest Bluetooth version 4.1. This also increases the connection range up to 30 meters.

There is also a carry case that is included with the Jabra Eclipse. This is not a normal storage pouch. It is an oval shaped portable charging pod that gives the Eclipse an additional 7 hours of talk time for a total of 10 hours. It takes approximately 2 hours to completely charge the Eclipse using the charger. Charging the case and the headset together takes 3 hours. 

In the previous models the micro USB slot for charging on the headset was covered with detachable rubber seal that adds to the bulk. Instead of having a USB charging slot that gathers dust and dirt, the Jabra Eclipse has two magnetic charging contacts that latch on to the charging pod when placed near it. I think this makes for a very cool closed design. The case can be carried in our pocket or placed on a desk. When the headset is removed from the charging case it automatically turns on. To turn it off it is placed back in the charging case.

The Jabra Eclipse also works seamlessly with the Jabra Assist app. The Jabra Assist app has been updated to include new features and support for the Jabra Eclipse. The app allows us to adjust audio quality, change spoken language, and also update our headset firmware wirelessly without connecting the headset to a computer.

Visual battery indicator, hands-free text message read out (for Android only), Find my Jabra feature to find the headset when it gets misplaced, and hands free Siri or Google Now access are some of the other features. Initially, I had Siri turning on by accident when I was handling the headset, then I had to remind myself that this headset works by touch.

I believe that the Jabra Eclipse is a winner with its beautiful, sleek, unobtrusive, buttonless design loaded with a lot of useful features. The Jabra Eclipse comes in white and black and is available at www.jabra.ca October 2015.

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